


Always gold

by nupoxsi



Category: Football RPF
Genre: (Bear with me), (I don't know what's the point of this), Alternate Universe - No Girlfriends/No Wives, Dorks in Love, Euro 2016, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-13
Updated: 2016-06-13
Packaged: 2018-07-14 19:52:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,288
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7187819
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nupoxsi/pseuds/nupoxsi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lukas grins fondly. When Bastian is playing, there’s always magic on the pitch.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Always gold

**Author's Note:**

> I have no idea whether people in the football fandom still read fanfiction. Or Schweinski. If so, hello there! ｡◕ ‿ ◕｡ I feel it's been years since I've sat down and properly written something down, but after yesterday's match, it's hard not to do it. It hasn't been beta'd, so all grammar mistakes are mine.
> 
> Also, a quick note: I know I've promised to finish some chaptered fics (both footie fandom and Ylvis fandom) but my life has been quite busy lately. In the best way, though. But I haven't forgotten there are things I must finish at some point. And I will. But as for now; I just _needed_ to write this.
> 
> Needless to say; none of the things stated below are true (but the fact that Germany won, the rest is merely fictional).
> 
> Anyway, enjoy!

Sitting on the bench is not the best feeling in the world. Lukas knows this first-hand. But that is the way football works, and he understands it.

He knows his value has decreased. These are no longer his golden years, neither in the National Team nor club-wise. But Lukas isn’t depressed about it. Football is like that, and he is only grateful to have given his everything with all of his teams, to have won the greatest and most prestigious trophy there is; the World Cup. It’s been two years already, and it’s always a reason to smile whenever he might wonder if he’s achieved enough. And he has, more than enough. Lukas has lived for football, he’s given his all, and he continues living for football. It’s his job, his magnificent job. Only few people can say their jobs have brought to them as much as football has given Lukas.

Football has brought happiness through hard times, a wealthy income, to be known all around the world. He’s gotten to know people with whom he’s had the pleasure to play with and against. He likes his job, he likes everything that it has given him. And who would ever think football would be able to bring love into his life? Because yes, football has given him love.

Football has given him _Bastian Schweinsteiger_.

In a mere professional context, Lukas feels content to have played next to Bastian for more than ten years now. It’s a great honour to feel so complete when he’s playing beside him on the pitch. The grass feels greener, the ball lighter at his feet. Bastian always knows when to make the perfect pass, and Lukas is there to catch it. They fit together, like machine gears.

But during times like these, when they’re not together on the grass, Lukas settles for following Bastian’s movements in detail.

There are only a few minutes left for the match to end. It’s the start of the championship for them, and they’re playing against Ukraine. They’ve done a great start so far, a positive match, the new talented guys keep proving everyone that the German football continues giving great players to the world. Lukas has been sitting at the end of the bench, wondering if he’d be called in tonight. It turns out to be that he won’t, but Bastian will. His friend has been sitting next to him, their knees touching, and commenting the match in cryptic whispers.

But the moment Jogi tells him to go warm up, Lukas takes his eyes off the game and follows Bastian’s movements, instead. It’s a habit, one that hasn’t gone away in years, one that Lukas _knows_ won’t ever go away. He stares at him coming back from the warm-up, throw the vest next to Lukas, address him with a warm smile, and run towards the game in course. The smile brings a full-teeth grin to Lukas’ face. He knows what the silent smiles mean, what the touches imply, what’s hidden between the short words uttered before jumping into the pitch.

Bastian crosses the white line on the ground that divides the pitch from the world, and Lukas’ heart skips a beat. Bastian keeps moving forward, and he’s into the game. The pride spreads on his chest, and he feels goosebumps on his arms once the fans in the stadium start clapping in unison to greet the current captain of the team.

Lukas grins fondly. When Bastian is playing, there’s magic on the pitch.

It’s impressive, almost something a child would say, but it’s true. Some might agree, others might be insulted by the idea, even. But Lukas knows it’s true. He can feel it with every pass Bastian gives, every ball he recovers, every play he creates. Bastian builds, Bastian unifies, Bastian achieves.

Even then, when the logical side of his brain never fails to find a reason to give a justified amount of attention to him, there’s also the not-so-logical side.

The other half of his brain stays busy with noticing the way Bastian looks gorgeous under the huge reflectors on the pitch. His mind works on remembering the new traits, consequences of ageing while there’s distance between them. Lukas loves to stare at him and feel his heart beating faster. A small smile appears on his face. He feels lucky, for having such an incredible person in his life. They’ve been best friends since the start, they’ve found so much in each other that it’s hard to think of being in the National Team without Bastian next to him. Moreover, Lukas is thankful for Bastian reciprocating the feelings that go beyond friendship, even if it happened years ago. He loves waking up in his embrace and falling asleep to the sound of his voice, be it whenever they’re both in the call-up for the National Team or whenever they have the time. It’s pleasant, it gives them both happiness and calmness. No one can take that away from them.

They keep all of those things between them; the teamwork, the friendship, and the unconditional love.

Lukas keeps smiling to himself as the ending of the match approaches. Throughout the years, those little things haven’t changed. If something, one of the little things that have changed is that they’ve gotten better at deciphering what the other has in mind. It’s a very gratifying feeling. He knows how to communicate with Bastian with small gestures, even in such a crowded place.

It’s past 90 minutes but the game still continues, and Lukas’ eyes haven’t stopped following Bastian across the pitch. There’s a huge chance for Germany to score, Lukas knows it, and he rubs his hands in anticipation of something good. He can hear the loud fans cheering for them to do it, and the only quietness comes from the players at his right.

In one second, just the blink of an eye, it happens. Mesut shoots the ball and Bastian finishes it off. Bastian, with an amazing technique, after almost five years since he last scored for Germany. Bastian, the captain, the greatest example of what a German player can do and achieve. The score is suddenly 2:0, and everything feels right. The stadium explodes in a loud exclamation of happiness, a reaffirmation of their victory.

With his arms up in the air, Bastian runs, and before Lukas knows what’s happening, he’s on his feet as well. He smiles, feels the usual adrenaline rush after scoring a goal, even if he wasn’t the one who kicked the ball. He notices Bastian running closer to where he stands, but the mass of teammates seem to catch him as he tries to get closer. However, he makes his way to Lukas, like always. His hands are suddenly grasping Lukas’ shoulders and neck and cheeks, and they’re both smiling. Bastian’s joy is contagious. The man looks as if he’s glowing with his own light.

“You did it, you did it!” Lukas says with energy, but without shouting. He knows Bastian will understand. “You amazing idiot, congrats!”

And he wants to say much more, Lukas wants to tell him all the things that he’ll probably be mumbling in the night as his lips trace all of Bastian’s skin. But he does against it. The happiness remains untouched, the joy from the scoreboard is there. He feels so happy to see him scoring again, especially after being world champions. Bastian deserves this, he deserves the glory and the recognition he’s won.

After his words, Bastian nods, but he doesn’t speak. Not the time, not the place, it is. But Lukas understands, so he nods back and holds back what he really wants to say.

“Go on, keep doing it!” Is what he exclaims, and watches Bastian pace back into the pitch.

The bench remains warm as he sits back on it. He feels someone passing their arm around his shoulders, warmly, friendly, to let him know they understand the emotion that’s going through Lukas’ veins. The euphoria that comes with starting the Euro with the right foot, the promise of going back with the trophy, the encouraging vibes the fans send them. Yes, Lukas is familiar with these things, and he feels them as the match is about to end. But again, there’s much more that makes him be blissful. There’s Bastian, his friend, his companion, the guy he’s seen grown next to him and turn into one of the greatest football players in the history of football.

Perhaps no one else would understand how proud he feels, not fully, at least. But that’s alright. He doesn’t need anyone to understand. He knows that by the end of the day, he’ll have Bastian in his arms, and he’ll speak all the words that have been left unsaid.

The final blow of the whistle secures the end of the match. Lukas shouts with the rest of the players on the bench, happiness present in the environment. The crowd that surrounds them explodes into an euphoric chant of praises. It’s happened, it’s sealed, Germany wins against Ukraine, 2:0.

All the German players stand up from the bench, congratulating each other with embraces that feel like home. It’s a silent promise among them, to know this will only impulse them to keep working on the championship. Lukas grins cheerfully, chants, and moves onto the pitch, still with the vest on. He’s greeted by many players, embraced, congratulated. He loves this feeling of being on the top of the world, he loves the warmth hugs and the friendly smiles, he loves the promises of greater achievements in this Euro, he loves—

_He loves him_.

His eyes find Bastian staring back.

Lukas’ mind clouds as he makes his way through a mass of players. Both smile; Lukas grins the biggest smile he can, his white-teeth wide and shining, and Bastian smiles back at him, with fondness. The two of them are drawn together, their arms wrapping around each other. Lukas feels blissful, he feels the beating of Bastian’s heart against his own chest, Bastian’s lips against his neck, the amusement in the other’s voice.

“That was amazing,” he utters as Bastian’s arms hold him in place. “You were amazing.”

“Stop it, I played no more than ten minutes,” Bastian replies with a comic chuckle. “There’s no need to glorify me.”

Lukas smirks against his neck. “Oh, I’ll glorify you tonight.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

And he knows it’s okay. He knows no one else would be able to hear what happens between the two of them, it’s intimate, even if they’re under the eyes of millions of spectators. It’s them, their embrace, and that’s what matters.

It lasts no more than a minute, but it’s enough for them to know what the other is feeling.

“You tease,” Bastian jokes back as they break apart, keeping his hands on Lukas’ shoulders. Even with a short distance between them, Lukas feels him close. “Thank you, though.”

“It’s okay,” he replies. “You were amazing, you need to know that.”

Bastian stays silent, but Lukas knows he’s thankful. He won’t push it, they’ll go back to it later tonight. Instead, he motions him to go and greet the other players, who are excited to congratulate him on the goal. Bastian understands, and disappears after a brief nod.

Lukas does something similar. He walks across the pitch, clapping towards the fans whenever he’s not hugging a fellow teammate or greeting an Ukrainian player. It feels good, to have this kind of feeling with him again. He feels happy, positive, he feels like they can make it again. It’s been two years, but he’s ready for it again. Just as Bastian was able to give so much in such a little time, Lukas is willing to do exactly the same. He’s ready to give 100% for his National Team, whenever he’s needed on the pitch.

After some minutes pass by, he’s on his way to the locker-room when his eye catches Bastian again. He’s on the middle of an interview, something common for the players who scored in the match. Lukas smiles with mischief, looking like a child. In the middle of the positive vibes around the place, Lukas cannot help but act by impulse. He cannot miss the chance. Pranks have been a part of their relationship since the beginning, though.

“Basti!” Lukas exclaims to surprise him, crashing the interview in a brief moment.

And Bastian’s eyes meet his own again. Lukas waits for an immediate response to the interview crashing, a giggle, a huge smile, a roll of his eyes. But for a short moment, what he sees reflected on his grey irises is love.

Lukas’ smile gets a bit smaller, but the feeling on his chest grows.

When Bastian blinks, his expression changes. The usual wide, playful smile that Lukas produces in him is there again, and he jokes by pushing him away, which usually results in Lukas getting as close as he can. And that’s exactly what he does. Lukas gets closer, until his head is basically in the same shot as Bastian and the interviewer doesn’t know what’s happening.

Everything feels exactly like years ago.

It’s impossible to deny the time goes by. championships come and go. Different stadiums, countries, continents. Lukas doesn’t feel like the boy he was years ago, he’s seen a grown a lot in more than ten years. He knows Bastian doesn’t feel in his early 20s anymore, either. But his eyes meet Bastian’s again, as he struggles to continue the interview. He grins at Lukas before chuckling, clearly lost with what he was supposed to answer. Lukas smirks and claps his hands.

Yes, nothing has changed.

Their relationship is still the same.


End file.
